Joe Flacco once played quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens for 11 seasons. However, after his departure, the veteran QB’s consistency dipped. In the 2025 season, Flacco was with the Cleveland Browns, in a 4-way QB competition with Kenny Pickett and rookies Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders. Then, a mid-season trade sent him to the Cincinnati Bengals, but the competition for Flacco remained the same as the second-string signal caller after Joe Burrow. One of Flacco’s sons became concerned about his playing time, revealed in the season 3 trailer of Netflix’s Quarterbacks.

“If dad goes off, I’m gonna crash out,” said one of Flacco’s sons in the Quarterback (Season 3) trailer. “[What do you mean?] I benched him.”

Joe Flacco’s NFL career started with a positive rookie season in 2008, where he finished with an 11-5 record, posting 2,971 passing yards and 14 touchdowns. From there on, the former Baltimore Ravens signal caller only saw an upward trajectory in his career. In the 2012 season, Flacco won Super Bowl XLVII and also earned MVP honors.

One of Flacco’s standout seasons came in 2016, when he threw 4,317 yards in 436 passes (single-season high). But following his stint with the Ravens, the veteran QB experienced a regression. He struggled to get a consistent playing time, and between 2019 and 2025, Flacco jumped from franchise to franchise, playing for the Broncos, Jets, Eagles, Browns, and Colts.

Considering the pattern, Flacco was unsure of receiving playing time heading into the 2025 season as well. And since the trailer of the Netflix series only displayed a fraction of that moment, it is unclear which of Flacco’s sons benched him.

In 2011, Joe Flacco tied the knot with his high school sweetheart, Dana Grady, in Philadelphia. Just under a year into marriage, they welcomed their firstborn, Stephen, on June 13, 2012. 15 months later, on September 14, 2013, Flacco’s second son, Daniel, was born. Notably, Daniel’s birth made major headlines as he arrived just an hour before the Ravens’ home game against the Browns.

Nearly two years later, on January 20, 2015, Flacco and Grady welcomed their third son, Francis. Then the couple welcomed their only daughter, Evelyn, on September 27, 2016. And two years later, on April 6, 2018, the couple’s fourth son, Thomas, was born.

The Cincinnati Bengals QB shares a very deep bond with his children, a mix of unconditional love and good-natured trash talk. For instance, His older sons, Stephen and Daniel, once joked that their dad “stinks” on the football field. Because they weren’t born when Flacco won Super Bowl XLVII and earned Super Bowl MVP honors with the Ravens, they claim they have never seen him do anything “impressive.”

However, they do share a great respect for their father and the sport he plays. During a fun meeting between CBS Sports reporter Aditi Kinkhabwala and Flacco’s family, the 41-year-old QB’s second-born, Daniel, also revealed his plans for the future.

“Daniel, when you think about playing sports, what sport do you want to play?” Kinkhabwala asked. Daniel replied: “Football.” Following that, Flacco revealed all his children’s sentiments and noted, “They all want to play football.”

Despite the inconsistent game appearances, the 41-year-old QB still appears motivated. And heading into the 2026 season, he is prepared to grab an opportunity as a second-string signal caller for the Bengals, while Joe Burrow leads the offense.